Thirty-Third Monday in Ordinary Time

Give me life, O Lord, and I will do your commands. Indignation seizes me because of the wicked who forsake your law.

The unfair treatment of others should fill us with indignation. It should light a fire within us. One that inspires us to bring love, mercy, and justice to the world around us. When we see wickedness, we should oppose it and try to show people there is another way. We cannot force goodness on others, but we can proclaim the Good News and show what it means to be Christians by living our lives in accordance with Scriptures. Most importantly, although we might hate the sins, we must also love the sinner. We must be able to separate the two from each other so we can treat people well no matter how ugly their actions are. God is the only judge and no matter how much we might be tempted to condemn another, we must only condemn their actions, not the person.

How are we fighting against the unfair treatment of others? How can we learn to love those whom we find most repugnant? What do we do to keep ourselves from being judgmental?

O Lord, help us to fight against the unfair treatment of others.

Amen.

Twenty-Third Tuesday in Ordinary Time

The Lord is compassionate toward all his works. I will extol you, O my God and King, and I will bless your name forever and ever. Every day will I bless you, and I will praise your name forever and ever.

God is compassionate toward all of us. He may be just in His punishment, but He is merciful, too. He gives us an example of treating others well and being good to them, even when they aren’t good to us. He shows us how to know, love, and serve Him and all His children, especially those who are most difficult to love. It is by His Holy Name that we are blessed and filled with grace and it is because of Him that we are called to become living sacrifices.

How do we treat others? Are we as compassionate as God is compassionate? What can we do to grown in mercy and love of God and others?

O Lord, be compassionate toward us.

Amen.

Twenty-Third Sunday in Ordinary Time

My brothers and sisters, show no partiality as you adhere to the faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ. For if a man with gold rings and fine clothes comes into your assembly, and a poor person in shabby clothes also comes in, and you pay attention to the one wearing the fine clothes and say, "Sit here, please, " while you say to the poor one, "Stand there, " or "Sit at my feet, " have you not made distinctions among yourselves and become judges with evil designs?

The world will try to impress us in many ways. It will try to convince us we can treat people differently depending on their status. It will tell us we should show preference for one type of person over another. However, this is not what Jesus did in his life. He treated everyone the same, sinners and holy people, good and evil, rich and poor, male and female. He judged them not by their outward appearances, but by their inner spirit. He even went so far as to tell his disciples they needed to humble themselves and become servants if they wanted to follow in his footsteps. Jesus loved everyone he met completely and totally and we are all called to the same love, even of our enemies.

Have we let the world convince us some people are more or less worthy of our love? How can we become more Christ-like in how we treat others? What can we do to avoid becoming judgmental?

O Lord, you are the one and only judge.

Amen.

Memorial of Saint Charles Borromeo, Bishop

A rich man had a steward who was reported to him for squandering his property. He summoned him and said, ‘What is this I hear about you? Prepare a full account of your stewardship, because you can no longer be my steward.’ The steward said to himself, ‘What shall I do, now that my master is taking the position of steward away from me? I am not strong enough to dig and I am ashamed to beg. I know what I shall do so that, when I am removed from the stewardship, they may welcome me into their homes.’

Unlike the steward, we don't need to lose our jobs in order to treat others fairly. Our charity should not come from selfish reasons. We should not expect a return on our good deeds. However, the steward does show us how to react prudently when faced with difficulties and to forgive the debts of others. He does the wise thing when he gives up his portion of each debt so those whom are indebted to his master will welcome him for his generosity. Sometimes we are tempted to demand repayment for something or hold it over people, but this is not what Jesus preaches. He teaches us to forgive other's debts to us so that our own debts might be forgiven. We cannot be a collector and a forgiver at the same time. We have to choose if our lives will be base on taking what we want or on giving what we have.

Do we treat others fairly? Are we charitable and forgiving? Are we prudent in how we treat others?

O Lord, we are willing to forgive the debts of others. Please be willing to forgive our debts as well.

Amen.